Public education, not law, the best way to get cyclists to wear helmets

I refer to the letter “Helmets save cyclists’ lives, so let’s make it a law to wear them” (Feb 11). I commend Mr Francis Cheng’s concern for safety, but as a cyclist, motorcyclist, driver and medical first responder, I recognise that implementing such a law brings about its own challenges.

As bicycles are a popular, inexpensive way of getting around, we may need to ensure that low-income people, including foreign workers and the poor elderly, can afford helmets.

It also entails cost on the part of the authorities to enforce the rule. We should also bear in mind that, in Australia, surveys found fewer people were willing to cycle after laws mandating the wearing of helmets kicked in. This is counterproductive to encouraging bicycling as a mode of transport.

As a first responder, I know head injuries are among the worst injuries to manage. I believe in wearing helmets, and wear one myself.

The legal route can play a part, but we must also continue with what the authorities have been doing: Encouraging the public to wear helmets through public education. We can go further and educate more on the consequences of head injuries, and the need to prevent them from happening.

We must continue to educate cyclists to wear helmets, such that they want to do so for themselves and their families, and not just because they have to. When we educate people on good riding habits and encourage people to take ownership of their safety, we create a society that is willing to address its own problems.